UPCOMING EVENTS

It’s not often that we go back and analyze “tweet storms,” those controversies that spin out of control on Twitter and the rest of the Internet after somebody steps their foot in a big pile of crap.

Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus VR and the modern virtual reality movement, got caught in such a storm. Along with a $500 million judgment in a copyright-and-theft lawsuit by Bethesda, the controversy led to his departure from Oculus. But a document that captures the tweet storm shows how it escalated and spun into something worse than it was at its beginning.

The issue arose again after news surfaced that Luckey, through a Californian limited-liability corporation called Wings of Time, gave $100,000 to President Donald Trump’s inauguration fund in January, according to official records (and first reported by MotherJones and Washington Post reports).

It all started back on September 22, when The Daily Beast published “Palmer Luckey: The Facebook billionaire secretly funding Trump’s meme machine.” To Harris, the idea of fake news starts with a misleading or inaccurate headline, often with a sexy headline. Then it spews through social media, energized by outrage, support, or concern.

The document was compiled by Blake J. Harris, who is writing a book for HarperCollins about the modern VR industry. Harris took the trouble to deconstruct what happened in the tweet storm line-by-line, and his conclusion is that Luckey didn’t get a fair shake in the controversy. He also included his own commentary and why he thought certain posts were important in the timeline.

“We rarely take a step back and reflect on stories from a few news cycles ago, especially when those stories were inaccurate, misleading, or outright false. It’s easier to just make a small correction or two, or perhaps even none at all, and move on to the next piece,” Harris wrote in an email. “It’s somewhat understandable why this happens—we’re busy, readers have already lost interest, etc. etc.—but ignoring these things leads to a sort of systematic problem: a lack of accountability, which is incredibly concerning to us all. Both as readers and as writers.”

He added, “It’s somewhat understandable why this happens—we’re busy, readers have already lost interest, etc. etc.—but ignoring these things leads to a sort of systematic problem: a lack of accountability, which should be incredibly concerning to us all. Because, in retrospect, it’s easy to see how this dynamic becomes fertile ground for ‘fake news.’”

Harris said he is not a Trump supporter, nor does he want to come off as a Luckey apologist. But he said he is bothered by the fairness of the press’ treatment of Luckey, as he believes that the headlines weren’t true.

Above: Nimble America’s anti-Hillary billboard.

Image Credit: Nimble America/Business Insider

In mid-September 2016, Palmer Luckey donated nearly $10,000 to a recently formed pro-Trump nonprofit organization, Nimble America. At the time of his donation, the entire body of Nimble America’s work consisted of putting up a single billboard in the Pittsburgh area that suggested Hillary Clinton should be in jail. Going forward, Nimble America planned to put up more billboards in battleground states (hence the organization seeking donations).

Here’s the facts as Harris saw them:

Nimble America was not responsible for creating or spreading any memes online.

Nimble America’s goal was to take meme-like images, like the billboard above, and put them into the real world (via billboards, T-shirts and stickers).

There is no evidence—nor, based on my research, do I see any reason to believe—that this organization promoted any sort of racist, sexist, misogynistic, anti-Semitic or white supremacist agenda. Neither is there any evidence of Nimble America engaging in any sort of trolling, harassing or “astroturfing.”

Milo Yiannopoulos had no affiliation with Nimble America other than to endorse the cause and, in his capacity as a moderator of the The_Donald subreddit, verify that there was indeed a wealthy backer [Luckey] who had donated to the organization [a little less than $10,000].

“The part that makes me sad (and angry) is the lack of accountability. Palmer Luckey no longer has his job. Meanwhile, every reporter who covered the story still does. I’m not at all saying they should lose their jobs, but I do think there ought to be a better way to handle these situations,” Harris wrote. “Oh, and the other thing that really kills me (which I believe is in that timeline): one week later, the Cards Against Humanity founder posted that 90 foot anti-Trump billboard in Chicago. The media loved that one.”

We haven’t made any judgment of our own in this case. But we’ll post this document for everyone to read. Harris provided the tweet document below, but for timing reasons, we have not provided the links to the actual tweets.

Timeline of Reporting for PL/NA Story

Below is a timeline of how the story was reported and the ripples that ensued.

Next $FB earnings call is November 2. I want this to be the first question that comes up.

6:43 PM Kotaku (Luke Plunkett)

Oculus Rift Founder Palmer Luckey Funding Trump Shitposters

“Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus Rift, has been keeping busy since he sold the company to Facebook in 2014. One thing he’s done to pass the time, as reported by The Daily Beast, is to financially back (and be named Vice President of) a company dedicated to alt-right meme shitposts.”

Above: John Riccitiello of Unity and Palmer Luckey of Oculus.

Image Credit: Unity

6:45 PM@rbottoms:

@anildash You just broke the biggest story of the year concerning people of color in tech. Thank you.

“He may be most closely associated with the kinds of anti-Clinton Facebook memes that even strident Donald Trump supporters roll their eyes at…with a focus on viral, anti-Clinton memes.”

8:09 PM @TTLabsVR:

Hey @oculus, @PalmerLuckey’s actions are unacceptable. NewtonVR will not be supporting the Oculus Touch as long as he is employed there.

8:11 AM @samfbiddle:

this guy turned out to be an immense shithead? no way

8:11 PM @kimmaicutler:

@PalmerLuckey’s girlfriend.

@nikkimoxxi:

I’m at the Trump rally in Anaheim! Love the diversity of people here!

Note: When later asked about that tweet, Nicole Edelmann (aka @nikkimoxxi) replied, “I definitely meant it sincerely! I met so many great people from all different races, ages, and backgrounds.” Regardless, her Twitter feed would soon become so inundated with threats of rape and violence that, by the following morning, she disabled her account.

8:14 PM @Cheryllynn512:

#Shameonyou

8:23 PM @Papapishu ✔:

My HTC Vive review:

Good immersion

Comfortable headset

Not invented by an obscenely rich pissbaby edgelord

8:19 PM @LeftWingMilitia:

The French Revolution 2.0 is coming & we’ll see your head fall into basket of deplorables.

8:22 PM @NickH725:

whomp whomp, I wish you good fortune in the flame wars to come

8:26 PM @Papapishu ✔:

Excited for the new PlayStation VR slogan “VR….Without The Holocaust Memes”

8:46 PM @LukePlunkett ✔:

Musk: let’s go to Mars!

Luckey: whitesupremacistmeme.jpg

9:03 PM @GhostofGhostDad:

Will I catch racism if I try on an Oculus headset?

9:35 PM @markhaverty:

@PalmerLuckey once called a plumber about a big shit clogging his toilet. The plumber tried to drag him out of the house.

9:36 PM @MimasAgency:

guess your career is over…RT

9:45 PM @AndyWarrenStein:

@PalmerLuckey is a singularly bad person.

9:27 PM @minliangtan:

Oh wow, I thought the pro-Trump Palmer Luckey story was satire the first time I read it. Just realized it’s true.

“The pair [Luckey and Facebook board member Peter Theil] stand in marked contrast to Facebook’s founder and chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, who has been vocal in his support of progressive policies – and his opposition to Donald Trump.”

1:48 AM @SteveZiss0u:

I’d bring some boxes to work tomorrow because Facebook probably isn’t going to give you much time to clean out your office.

What does Alt-Right patron Palmer Luckey believe?
“Liking an islamophobic tweet is not the same as being islamophobic. A
retweet is not an endorsement. People do and say a lot of dumb things on
Twitter and that does not necessarily reflect their character. But from the
Twitter presence of Luckey, a well-moneyed public figure and key player
in the VR industry who holds a certain power and influence, a pattern
emerges.”

phew! so glad your political bs made my buying decision much easier. Never give money to Oculus– got it.

8:03 AM Thai Phan, who worked with Luckey at USC, publishes the following post on his Facebook account:

Here is some truth: when Palmer worked at MxR, and was still attending CSULB, he would impersonate his calculus professor, mocking his broken English. He told me his prof was Vietnamese and wondered why all of his profs couldn’t speak perfect English. This bothered me a little… but I figured he was just acting his age, and was merely frustrated with math. I’m glad that this is out in the public now… it shows he hasn’t changed.

8:08 AM The Atlantic (Ian Bogost)

Why a Silicon Valley Founder Is Funding a Factory for Trump Memes

“For wealthy geeks like Palmer Luckey who seek vengeance against the institutions they perceive to exclude them, “The Donald” is an obvious ally.”

8:08 AM @NeonNazgul:

But hey @PalmerLuckey thanks for reinforcing the stereotype that gamers are white male racist douchebros. Good job, champ.

8:33 AM @Ronorra:

oKKKulus scumbag.

8:40 AM @Normchacho:

So, White-supremacy, how’s that going for you?

8:49 AM @bearplane3D:

you could have promoted women in tech, diversity in games, built tech to make the world a better place for the less fortunate

“It’s been an open secret for some time that Palmer Luckey, the 24-year-old founder of VR company Oculus Rift and heir apparent to the future of gaming, is a strange guy—the type who argues with his customers on Reddit and casually cosplays as My Little Pony characters. Turns out, he also appears to be an active supporter of Donald Trump and the alt-right, and in a long-term relationship with an avid Gamergater.”

9:01 AM Polygon (Colin Campbell)

Oculus founder Palmer Luckey is spending big on anti-Hillary memes

“Nimble America’s front page features a story about rapists operating in “criminal gangs” along the Mexico border, echoing some of Trump’s most controversial claims.”

9:03 AM @wayofthedodo:

Don’t care how much $ @Palmer Luckey contributes to Trump’s marketing. DJT will lose in Nov & Luckey will be out a few mil. Fuck them both.

9:26 AM @timtimtimtim:

This revelation made me want to vomit harder than Rift DK1 did :-/

9:27 AM @peo:

Oh boy, you fucked it up again…

9:29 AM@adlangx:

I’ll definitely be avoiding the Trump VR set.

9:48 AM @JanPKarlsson:

You don’t need Putin’s money I presume, so I can only conclude you wish to destroy America for free? Trump is a charlatan.

9:51 AM @kadybat:

There are people like Palmer Luckey throughout Orange County. Deeply conservative, tacitly racist, masking their racism with false populism.

9:56 AM @smktty:

Palmer Luckey’s girlfriend is pretty much a Nazi.

9:58 AM @MaxTemkin:

@Polytron Cards Against Humanity will not support Oculus as well

Note: Prior to this tweet, the “Nuisance Committee”—a Super-PAC founded by Cards Against Humanity creator Max Temkin—had just spent $20,000 to put up a 90-foot anti-Trump billboard in Chicago near O’Hare International Airport. .

@PalmerLuckey is so stupid, he thinks that the country that turned an unknown VR enthusiast into a near billionaire is not already great.

10:25 AM UploadVR (Ian Hamilton)

VR Community Divided After Report Ties Palmer Luckey To Pro-Trump Meme Group

“E McNeill, the developer of early VR titles Darknet and Tactera, both available through the Oculus store, tweeted a screenshot of a $1,000 donation to Hillary Clinton’s campaign after the report published on Thursday afternoon. Another Twitter user wrote “I’m cancelling Touch support in my game as long as Palmer works for Oculus” along with a photo directing the middle finger at the as-yet unreleased controllers.”

“I’ve spoken with Luckey only a couple of times over the years, but we’re also friends on Facebook. That never really meant anything until July, when…in an effort to mock one of my other friends, the Oculus founder used 4chan’s “greentexting” syntax to imply she was being ridiculous. Greentexting is when 4chan users put the “>” symbol in front of their text to turn it green. This signifies the user is telling a story or the user is quoting someone else to highlight how silly they are.”

@thatadamguy I’m open to suggestions for accountability, but an organization that he leads seems the appropriate target.

11:17 AM @VoteMarcoRubio:

I am releasing KKKickstarter. Will you help us fund it?

11:19 AM @FortKickassYT:

Palmer Luckey sounds like the name of the douchey preppy the hero would have to beat in a ski race to save the rec centre in an 80s movie

11:42 AM @DaiyuHurst:

Palmer Luckey must die.

11:49 AM @CaseyNewton ✔:

Somebody make a 30-day VR experience about life as a non-white American male and strap it to Palmer Luckey’s stupid face

12:26 PM @the_rami ✔:

The whole situation with Oculus and Luckey just makes me so sad that I want to escape into some sort of HTC Vive-powered virtual reality.

12:50 PM Polytron, the developers of a game called SUPERHYPERCUBE, publishes the following statement on pastebin:

You may have seen the news yesterday that ties Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey to Nimble America, a Trump-endorsing organization Luckey started to defame Clinton via “the power of Internet memes”.

In a political climate as fragile and horrifying as this one, we cannot tacitly endorse these actions by supporting Luckey or his platform.

In light of this, we will not be pursuing Oculus support for our upcoming VR release, SUPERHYPERCUBE.

If you are a voting citizen of the United States, please remember to register and make your voice heard this November 8th. Do not let bigotry, white supremacy, hate and fear win.

1:30 PM The Ringer (Alyssa Bereznak)

Palmer Luckey Has Money to Burn: Predicting the next move for tech’s newest über-villain

“OK, we get it, Luckey. You’re very young. You have a very silly, very white name…You have a sister named Ginger. If things were different, and you didn’t have the money to fund a community of trolls who want to elect Trump, maybe you’d be like any other Long Beach college dropout, spending your student loans on novelty shot glasses at Urban Outfitters.”

1:12 PM @de_cNile:

Rip dude, it was good while it lasted :(

1:56 PM @SBenzell:

I thought I knew who you were. But funding white supremacist trolls? The con-man Trump? You and Thiel are on something strong

@PalmerLuckey & @oculus are officially off my nice list and on to the naughty one.

6:03 PM @bobservo:

after learning that Palmer Luckey’s girlfriend cosplays as GamerGate mascot Vivian James, i honestly don’t think this story could get better

6:12 PM The Hollywood Reporter (Natalie Jarvey)

Backlash brews after Oculus founder funds anti-Hillary Clinton memes

6:23 PM @dennislarkin:

.@PalmerLuckey is a total racist #AltRight @realDonaldTrump supporting #SCUMBAG! You can throw him in the #BasketofDeplorabes with the rest!

6:44 PM Palmer Luckey publishes the following post on his Facebook account:

I am deeply sorry that my actions are negatively impacting the perception of Oculus and its partners. The recent news stories about me do not accurately represent my views.

Here’s more background: I contributed $10,000 to Nimble America because I thought the organization had fresh ideas on how to communicate with young voters through the use of several billboards. I am a libertarian who has publicly supported Ron Paul and Gary Johnson in the past, and I plan on voting for Gary in this election as well.

I am committed to the principles of fair play and equal treatment. I did not write the “NimbleRichMan” posts, nor did I delete the account. Reports that I am a founder or employee of Nimble America are false. I don’t have any plans to donate beyond what I have already given to Nimble America.

Still, my actions were my own and do not represent Oculus. I’m sorry for the impact my actions are having on the community.

.@PalmerLuckey Palmer, what you just wrote about NimbleRichMan isn’t true. Or you didn’t tell the truth in an email earlier this week.

7:38 PM @nickwcoleman:

You let everyone down man.

7:43 PM ‏@ShardShinjuku:

@PalmerLuckey has yet to understand that his current situation ends with him falling on his sword one way or another.

7:44 PM ‏@jessesingal ✔:

Palmer Luckey sounds like the name of a highly inbred descendant of the South’s laziest and stupidest slaveowner.

7:44 PM @Cernovich✔:

.@PalmerLuckey DO NOT apologize, do not resign from any job, do not do anything. Tim Hunt’s case is informative.

Note: Cernovich links to an article about Tim Hunt, a Nobel Prize-winning British biochemist, who was “mocked and vilified on Twitter and in the media after he reportedly told a gathering of women scientists that “girls” in the lab are a nuisance because they are lovesick crybabies.”

The article goes on to explain “It turns out that, just as Hunt has claimed, the 72-year-old scientist’s comments during a luncheon at a science journalism conference in Korea in June were an awkward self-deprecating joke—greeted with laughter (not the reported “stony silence”) by a mostly female audience. The “Tim Hunt, misogynist scientist” narrative has been falling apart piece by piece over the past month; last week, it was finished off by a snippet of audio recorded by a female attendee and made public by The Times. Now, attention should turn to the real scandal: irresponsible journalism magnified by social media frenzy.”

7:49 PM @bill_e_wheeler:

Hey shit-stain – hear that? It’s the sound of every living human being in 31 blue states never, ever using Oculus. Ever.

7:57 PM Jason Rubin publishes the following post on his Facebook account:

I wanted to give Palmer Freeman Luckey a chance to respond before I said anything, and having read his post. I take him at his word. Those of you who have known me before I joined Oculus know that I would not work in a place that I thought condoned, or spread hate. Nor would I remain silent if I saw it raise its head. I have always believed that games, and now especially VR, have the potential to bring people together. My view is unwavering. I continue to believe that Oculus can make the world a better place.

.@PalmerLuckey So, you’re not sorry you funded shitposting, but sorry it negatively affected the business, i.e. sorry you got caught?

8:50 PM Brendan Iribe publishes the following post on his Facebook account:

I want to respond to the recent press stories involving Palmer. I know that Palmer is deeply sorry for the impact this situation is having on the company, our partners and the industry.

Everyone at Oculus is free to support the issues or causes that matter to them, whether or not we agree with those views. It is important to remember that Palmer acted independently in a personal capacity, and was in no way representing the company.

Spineless @PalmerLuckey apology to the faux-outrage niche for having a free will attack grants him everyone’s hate.

8:31 AM Motherboard (Emanuel Maiberg)

Palmer Luckey is Lying to Somebody

9:23 AM @johnsob20:

@PalmerLuckey Turns out Oculus co-founder is a racist Trump supporter. Glad I haven’t given him my money, and now I never will.

11:47 AM Tech Crunch (Anthony Ha)

The ugly reality of an Oculus founder’s politics

“…complicates the picture that Luckey has built up in the media as a geeky genius who’s just so damn passionate about virtual reality. All those things could be as true today as they were a year or two ago, but now you also have to think about the Luckey who’s supported trolls who hijack conversations with white supremacist memes…”

12:27 PM @_MinightCoffee:

As a mexican who was saving to get an oculus kit, the Luckey debacle is very disappointing. I’m sure there are better ways to be political

4:11 PM @Shuddertrix:

I want to beat the absolute shit out of anyone that owns an Oculus Rift

8:59 PM Robert Scoble publishes the following post on his Facebook account:

Why Mark Zuckerberg should fire Palmer Freeman Luckey. Because he was playing on Reddit pissing off many in the community instead of doing his job.

The HTC Vive has room scale VR. Oculus doesn’t. The Vive has controllers out today. Oculus doesn’t. The Vive is way more fun. The Vive has developers around the world building for it and not Oculus.

This morning a friend I trust a lot told me Google Daydream is way nicer than anyone expects (that is coming October 4th). For me the real war is over mobile.

Note: I am speaking for myself only here and have no idea what Upload VR thinks on this topic.

Facebook is being beaten in VR and out positioned by others in AR. Which is nuts because you spent billions to get Oculus. Zuck this should concern you because so much of Facebook’s future lies on VR and AR.

Luckey hasn’t done a good job for you. Get rid of him and get some management that understands how important this market is.

9:48 PM Nonny De La Pena publishes the following post on her Facebook account:

I am being asked by many people and members of the press to comment about Palmer and his funding of Nimble America’s s**tposting on Hillary Clinton. While he has the right to offer political support to anyone he wishes, as a woman working in technology who has faced many disparaging remarks, who also had amazing but undocumented grandparents from Mexico, and who has witnessed her mother subject to racist comments firsthand, the things Trump says sicken me. Feeling dismayed barely describes my sentiments.

11:12 PM @ReddestOfRobins:

@PalmerLuckey I honestly didn’t know who you were until all of this, but it’s clear to see you’re getting a raw deal here. Best wishes, dude

SEPTEMBER 25, 2016

2:53 PM @Qualzog:

@PalmerLuckey while I disagree with your political views, you should be able to spend your money however you want. #Democracy

2:54 PM @Qualzog:

@PalmerLuckey speaking of spending your money on what you want, can you buy me a Rift? Come onnnnnnnn! :) I finally have a PC that will work

2:56 PM Tech Times (Alexandra Burlacu)

Amid Heavy Criticism Over His Pro-Trump Investments, Oculus Founder Gets Two Top Executives On His Side

“The truth is that Luckey’s contribution to Nimble America did affect Oculus and many people’s view of the company, casting a dark cloud above it. It remains to be seen how things will unfold, especially since several developers said they will no longer support Oculus as long as Luckey is still a part of it.”

SEPTEMBER 26, 2016

6:04 AM @DarthClide:

Hang in there man! Just voicing my support for you to have your own voice. :)

5:45 PM USA Today (Marco della Cava and Brett Molina)

Facebook millionaire Luckey aligns himself with alt-right, but only if you squint

“While Scruta Games and a few other VR companies expressed similar sentiments, such stances often are met with blistering criticism. In responding to Tomorrow Today Labs’ stance, WolfLoot tweeted “Ur anti-freedom,” while Scott Malcomson wrote, “What ‘actions’? Voting for someone you don’t like? Grow up.”

Above: The silouhette of Palmer Luckey, the founder of Facebook-owned Oculus VR.

Image Credit: Dean Takahashi/VentureBeat

SEPTEMBER 29, 2016

1:20 PM @ScrutaGames:

We’ve failed to find any evidence backing up the Daily Beast’s claim that Luckey paid for hate speech. Only a lame billboard.

1:23 PM @ScrutaGames:

So we were misinformed about him financially backing hate speech, which was the issue we had.

1:23 PM @ScrutaGames:

Since there is no evidence of that so far, we will tentatively resume work on Touch support.